Jacob's influence

The man's death was something influenced by Jacob. Many things that happen to the characters lives, before, on and after the Island, have been as a result of Jacob setting their path so that they would one day end up on the Island in some way. The man in red shoes was destined to die at a particular moment so that a temporarily displaced Desmond would witness the event, thus not only getting his own life back on track, but would also recall the idea of a course-correcting universe later on the Island, when he would relay it to Charlie, thus setting off the chain of events that lead to his death and shutting off of the radio jammer. In this sense, this man's death was instrumental in the events that would take place on the Island.